January

Secondary 1 Orientation 2018

“Ohana” – which means family – was the theme for this year’s Secondary 1 Orientation. The week-long orientation culminated in the Orientation Campfire held on 5 Jan 2018, organised by the Girl Guides.

With the setting sun as backdrop, the campfire started, with Mrs Chong, our Principal gracing the opening and sending the fireball sliding down from the fourth floor at Block H. The evening’s event rolled into action, following the skit put up by the Girl Guides.

The setting of the skit was Crezneyland (Crescent’s very own Disneyland) where six Disney characters (represented by the six Orientation Groups) – Lilo and Stitch, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Mulan, Moana and Frozen – took center stage and portrayed the virtues displayed by the key characters – peace-loving Lilo, resilient Cinderella, compassionate Belle, loyal Mulan, courageous Moana and loving Anna. The people of Crezneyland realised the power of unity, and as one Ohana defeated the evil villain.

The campfire also saw many exciting performances by the various CCAs, including the Chinese and Modern Dance, Crez Chorale, Angklung and Kulintang, Symphonic Band, Red Cross Youth, National Cadet Corps, and National Police Cadet Corps. Finally, the Girl Guides performed a vibrant dance, mixing splashes of finger lights with energetic dance steps.

Throughout the campfire, the Sec 1s strengthened their sense of belonging and identity as Crescentians. They learned to work as a close-knit team in games and demonstrated the C-DIET values in their performances. The campfire night truly felt like home and family where everyone came together. Indeed, we are Ohana!

Reported by Viswanathababu Gurupriya, 3G2

Release of ‘O’ Level Results

There was an excited buzz in the air as students and graduates alike gathered in the auditorium for the release of the O-level results. A delighted Mrs Chong, our principal, gave an overview of how well the cohort had fared. Gasps and cheers sounded out as it was revealed that the percentage of distinctions for some subjects were the highest the school had seen in five years. The auditorium rang with applause for those lauded for outstanding character, as well as top notch performance in their academics. Soon the presentation soon came to an end. The much-awaited moment had arrived.

Students waited with bated breaths, as their teachers handed them their results one by one. Some held on to the result slip, clutching at their friends and hardly daring to take a peek. Others whipped it out in a rush, eager to finally know how they fared.

Emotions ran high as shrieks of elation filled the auditorium. Many students jumped for joy and yelled congratulatory wishes to their equally jubilant friends. The 2017 batch had done well! These results were the culmination of their hard work over the last four years, the hours spent slogging over homework, persevering through the lessons and revision, no matter how dreary or intense.

Looking on at the scene, I hope that when the time comes for this year’s Sec 4 batch to receive their O Level results, we would be crying out in glee too, and that we would continue the legacy our seniors left behind…. doing the school proud.

Reported by Huang Hui Xing (4C2)

Dedication Ceremony 2018

9th January marked a joyous occasion, one in which the school formally welcomed the new Secondary Ones into the Crescentian family. The Dedication Ceremony, which is held in the auditorium annually, holds much significance, and is one that is greatly anticipated by the students and teachers alike. The event allows us to renew our pledges and once again express our dedication to the school by being courteous, generous and sincere ladies and leaders of tomorrow - values becoming of a true Crescentian.

As with every important event, the ceremony commenced with the singing of the school song. As we sang, many phrases like “To cherish our Alma Mater, now and forever later. Onward with zeal and zest, forward we of CGS…” stood out as they are the ones that we as Crescentians always hold dear to our hearts. The introduction of the staff was met with a warm round of applause as the students cheered for their teachers. This was then followed by the recital of the teachers’ pledge led by Mrs Chong, our Principal.

Finally, it was time for the badge pinning ceremony - a touching and heartwarming moment wherein the seniors pinned the new school badges onto the Secondary Ones’ uniforms and presented handmade cards to their juniors. This was the highlight of the day, as it was the moment whereby the new Secondary Ones received their school badges, signifying their official initiation into the school.

The ceremony ended with the President of Council, Anisah Nurhani, leading Crescentians in the school cheer. The auditorium filled with joyous cheer, and the energy and true Crescentian spirit of the students could be felt. Just as the school is like a second home to us, we hope that the new Secondary Ones will feel right at home here.

May Crescent (forever) be in our hearts.

Reported by Karis Lee and Lau See Kei (4G1)

O-Level Exam Results
2017: Interview with the Secondary Fours

What are your feelings right now after receiving your results?

Aqidah:

Grace: Overall, I feel very grateful and thankful for the results I received. Honestly, I was quite shocked because I was not expecting such results.

Aces: I feel relieved, because after I came out of the exam, I was actually feeling rather unsure of how I would fare and did not feel confident of myself. I am also satisfied with myself because I know that the hard work I put in has paid off.

Bhavana: I'm quite satisfied, because I came in here with quite low expectations of myself, but I think I've done better than I expected.

Jolene: I guess right now I'm feeling an adrenaline rush, and definitely very relieved because before we even got our results, I estimated I would get an L1R5 of 16, so the fact that I got half of what I expected is really satisfying and it makes me feel like all my hard work has really paid off.

Mia: I feel quite happy and relieved because my results have improved. So, the fact that I did better than my prelims is very satisfying.

What is the recipe for your success that you could share with your juniors?

Aquidah: The recipe for my success is probably motivation and constantly improving my areas of weaknesses. A big part of it is staying happy and not being too overwhelmed at times, so knowing how to manage my stress played a huge part in my success.

Chloe: One of the things that I think helped me attain this success is that I really reached out to the teachers. In Crescent, the teachers are very helpful and are really willing to go the extra mile for you. I think part of the success that I have attained is because of the teachers, and the fact that you have to reach out to them to try and do better. I also feel that “quality over quantity” is very important. Personally, I felt that I had not done as many papers as my friends, but I think it is important that you do the papers properly, do them well, and really learn from your mistakes. Attempting at more papers doesn’t mean that you will definitely do better.

Zhijun: I think one really important thing is to put in consistent effort. My aim was to be able to stick to my regular schedule, so I could get as much rest as I needed during the exam season and that I would have a fresh mind when taking the exam. I also try and understand certain concepts as quickly as I can. For example, I will think of the quickest method to understand something yet achieve the same results as others. During lessons, I will pay attention in class. Since the teachers will be explaining something important, you would reap the most reward if you listen to their explanations in class instead of going for consultations with them and getting them to repeat what they have already taught in class.

Divya: For me, it was understanding concepts early. My revision started from as early as in Secondary 3. I didn’t leave my revision to the last 2-3 months before O’s. I also tried to get as much of the content in my head as possible. If you try to understand your concepts early and especially not right before O Levels, I think that would really help. I also think that having the right attitude is important. With each examination, regardless of whether your grades are good or bad, I think it is wise to remain humble and be a bit more optimistic. Try and push yourself even if you feel like you might not have done well in the past.

Grace: Throughout Secondary 3 and Secondary 4, I saw my friends facing a lot of emotional stress and I also had my own stress. I feel that what really helps when you face this kind of stress is to not give up and not listen to all the negative voices that tell you to stop. I think the most important thing is to be positive and tell yourself that even though you didn’t do well this time, it is what you do afterwards that makes a difference to motivate yourself. Surround yourself with positive people and help others along the way as well. My recipe for success is to think positively.

Aces: Giving and receiving help is a very big part of my success. One cannot only rely on herself to weather the darkest storms as it is too much for you alone to handle. Hence, I feel that we should try to get help, like going for consults with the teachers that not only help you in your academic subjects, but your emotional well- being as well. I feel that another big part of my success comes from my rendering help to my friends in need, to step forward and help them. I realised that by helping others, I understood the concepts better and realised that I would re-read the question and think of other ways to explain it so that my friend can understand it better. In that way, I push myself to be very clear with what the question is asking because I do not want to teach my friend the wrong thing.

Megan: I think that what really helped me was being consistent throughout the year in my school work and revision. Keep on reviewing your mistakes and look back on practices you have done. Being consistent is critical, especially towards the exams when you feel stressed as it helps you recall and revise key points and mistakes to avoid. Once you’ve revised enough, the O’ levels will just be like another exam because you’ve been conditioned to it so it was not as stressful as we thought it would.

Xinyao: My weakness lay mainly in my Humanities, and as a triple eight student, I had only one Humanities subject to fall back on for my L1R5, so I had to ace it. What I did was to form a study group with my friends and we displayed our camaraderie through encouraging each other and consulting each other for help with work or advice. We helped correct each other’s mistakes and presently took note of them as places to correct and improve on. This really helped us to push each other to study for a subject that really required constant practice and we felt more comforted knowing that we had someone to shoulder our burdens with us.

Sarah: For me, I think it is never too late to start something new. I was always the type to stick to something that I always thought worked in my favour. However, in Secondary 4, I started to think ‘Oh, maybe I should try a new study method or an alternative way to solve a problem’. I think it really helped me study better as compared to before. If you realise that one method is not working for you, move on instead of blindly using it over and over again to try and make that method work.

Suwetha: I think it is important to not compare yourself to others because when you’re studying in a class sometimes the atmosphere, especially nearing the O’ levels, can be very stressful. When you are especially weak in a subject, the gloomy atmosphere in the class can make you doubt yourself even more and have that sinking feeling that you might not be able to do it. Still at the end of the day, the O’ levels is just another milestone for you to get by and it is not as bad as you might think it is, so don’t be disheartened.

What was your source of motivation or inspiration?

Xinyao: For me, my teachers were my source of motivation. I mentioned earlier that I was weaker in my Humanities so my friends and I would often go to them for consultations. However, it was during these consultations that I saw and realised just how hard our teachers worked for us and that made me feel guilty, especially if I didn’t work as hard or even harder than them to achieve the results I have now, so it was my way of repaying my teachers and thanking them for putting in so much effort for us. That is why it motivated me to work harder so I could repay the hard work of my teachers with my results.

Sarah: I have family members whom I really look up to and I work hard for them to be proud of me. I constantly tell myself that this is all for my own good because in the end it will all come down to my own efforts and if I were to fail, I would be the only one who would have regrets. I have to work hard for myself and no one else. Personally, looking at Kpop Idols and such served as my inspiration because I looked up to them for their dedication and hard work to get where they are now, but many parents seem to see it more as a distraction than anything else. While I do agree it can become one, it is all about finding a balance between the two and turning it into an advantage rather than a handicap.

Megan: Mine is a slightly different story, in the sense that both of my parents’ highest level of education was Secondary school, so I am the only one in my family who is pursuing an education past secondary school and this really motivated me to do well. It’s a slightly different kind of motivation from what others might have, nevertheless I tried to find something unique to myself to drive myself to work harder and this was it.

Suwetha: I was mostly motivated by my classmates and teachers. Seeing my classmates all working hard made me want to work even harder to keep up with them and watching them practice spurred me on to revise and do the same. The teachers would often come in and tell us how they believe in our abilities and encouraged us to push on and whenever they did this, it really inspired me to do my absolute best and keep going so as to not let them down.

Chloe: One of my sources of inspiration was the teachers. As I mentioned earlier, the teachers in Crescent are really very helpful and are willing to go the extra mile for you. So, when the teachers are willing to help you, you feel like you want to do well for them, since they’ve already provided you with so much help, care and love already. In my case, I wasn’t doing very well for Additional Mathematics but my teacher, Ms Ting, really helped me out, so I really wanted to do well to make her proud. I think another source of inspiration, which is common for many of us, is my family. I strove to achieve excellence so I could make my parents proud as well.

Zhijun: I felt like I didn’t want to disappoint the people around me. My Chinese teacher, for example, had really put in a lot of effort, and if I didn’t perform well, it would have been devastating and might have left a bad taste in her mouth if one of her students did not perform as well as expected. I also didn’t want to disappoint my parents this time around, since I didn’t do as well as expected for my PSLE.

Divya: Aside from teachers and parents who play a very important role, my sources of motivation were my friends. Last year, my classmates were very enthusiastic about making the most out of their time, using any chance or free time they got to study. This kind of pushed me to work harder, so that I could match up to them.

Bhavana: I think I'm a very self-motivated person and I want to do well. I know that I can work hard and put in my best effort into my academics. My main source of motivation is my mother whom I am very close to and she's a person who'd never really stress me. And because of the amount of space that she gives me and the fact that she doesn't pressure me, it makes me want to do well for her. So, I really think that my inspiration and motivation come from my family.

Mia: Similar to Bhavana, I am quite a self-motivated person. I found that after a while, I just did what I had to do, and what motivated me was the thought that, “If I have to accomplish something, I might as well do it well”. On top of that, halfway through my Secondary 3 year, I saw that my grades were improving and this inspired me to have the drive to want to continue to improve and do better. Overall, seeing improvement in my grades really motivated me because I started to imagine what I could accomplish, so I put in the effort to work towards that goal.

Jolene: I am a big believer in the quote “Push yourself because no one else is going to do it for you.” In a way, no matter where you draw your inspiration from, in the end, it comes down to you. This is because you will be the one putting in the hard work and hours, so to me it was the feeling of: this is my future and I only have one life. You are the only one who is in control of your own future, so it is important to work hard now which is a crucial period of time in your secondary school life.

What were some of your study methods employed?

Aqidah: My study methods varied, depending on the subject. For my Humanities subjects, I started writing essays almost every day so that I could remember my content without having to refer to my notes. I also focused a lot on my notes which contained all my content. They were very detailed, and they contained a lot of keywords. As I was weak at Math, my study method was to constantly do papers. It really helped me to build up my confidence and clear my misconceptions faster. For languages I read. For example, for Malay, my teacher suggested watching Malay dramas so that your brain is used to communicating in Malay and more prepared for the exam.

Grace: I think other than taking notes during class and listening during class, you should make your own notes and do your homework. What helped me was looking through the past papers and revising questions from them. I looked at questions or concepts tested and really focused on those to make sure I knew them so that when I see a question with a similar concept to what I have revised, I immediately know what to do. Nearing the exam, especially for humanities, I feel that it is easier if you categorise information. Organise your thoughts in your brain so if someone asks you a specific question then you can spill the correct information rather than to have all your content in one big mess.

Chloe: One method I adopted was progressive learning rather than cramming all your work at once. I think when you do this, you tend to remember it more. You do not have to study as hard next time as you already have most of the knowledge in your head. So that worked for me. Another thing I tried was to do all my work within the day and not to procrastinate. I will finish whatever work was given that day so that it does not pile up, if not you will not have enough time at the end of the day and you’ll feel very overwhelmed.

Divya: I don’t have a specific study method, so I would recommend just going with the one that works for you because if you try someone else’s study methods, chances are it won’t work. Taking frequent breaks also helps. If you feel like listening to music for 15 minutes, go ahead. Don’t study like 3 hours at one go.

Bhavana: For me, I was very late in discovering the type of learner that I was, so I feel the very first thing is to understand what kind of learner you are. That means you know whether you learn better when you talk to yourself, or if you learn better in groups. I know that there are many kinds of learners. Hence you need to know your profile as a learner and then work on your studies based on that. The other thing would definitely be to constantly put more effort in a subject you tend to neglect such as English or the other languages to avoid getting the writer's block, which I encountered during the O Levels. You don't have to write out the whole essay but you have to know about various topics and how to develop your ideas.

Jolene: For me, what I really want to emphasize is quality over quantity. A lot of people have this is misconception that if you do like 100 papers you will get an A. For me that's really not the case, because when I did tests or practice papers I always make a lot of mistakes. So what really helped me was doing the corrections and going for consultations. This really helped me identify the areas that I was weak in and how I could do better.

Mia: The main way I studied was to reproduce notes, so I wrote them over again but in a more condensed version so it's much easier for me to refer to everything. Take for example a chapter on Chemistry. I would compile notes on covalent ionic bonding into ten slides and then whenever I wanted to refer or go through my notes it at night, they’re all there. Then another thing I did later in the year was mind maps. I would do a mind map for every chapter for Biology and that really helped.

How did you manage your time?

Grace: One thing that really helped was planning well. So at the start of the day, I would plan what I would do for the rest of the day. I would complete at least 70% of the tasks. A very important thing is that you should not study every single day as you would burn yourself out very easily. You have to make sure to make time for friends, family and importantly yourself.

Aces: I think I took a lot of breaks and that was my way of relieving my stress. It was also a way to switch between my subjects. Sometimes, when you do too much of something, you will get unmotivated to go on. For example, my favourite subject was Mathematics. When I was tired, I would just practice some Mathematics questions. Everyone will have a subject that they like or are fairly good at. What you can do, is to leave the subject aside as something you would do when you have completed other subjects or when you get tired of them. Instead of going on your phone or sleeping when you get unmotivated, you can practice on the subject so at least you are doing something productive.

Bhavana: Throughout Secondary 3, I had many things on my plate including CCA commitments, EXCO commitments and my academics as well. The one thing I really live by is: If I am given work on that day, I will complete it on that day. Since there were so many things to accomplish, I really had to be fast and proactive in my work. Through accomplishing my tasks on that given day, I freed up some time for the next few days which I could use for revision which contributes to having better time management. Another thing that really helped me was to minimize distractions. When I entered Secondary 4, I completely went off social media because I realised that I was spending too much time on it. By doing this, I had the time which I had not been managing properly before and could now use more wisely. Lastly, I would recommend getting a planner to plan out what exactly you want to do. I believe that you can just sit down and think about what you want to do but having a plan written down or taken down somewhere makes a big difference in helping you to increase your productivity.

Jolene: Throughout Secondary 4, I had a planner and I believe it is very important to have a defined list of tasks that you know you need to accomplish by the end of the day. This helped me to prevent my tasks from piling up over the next few days. Nearing the exam period, I utilized my planner to keep track of my test and exam dates so that I would know clearly when my deadlines were. My planner had 2 columns, I for homework and one for revision and especially for revision, this idea helped me to effectively track my progress and take note of which topics I had revised. Lastly, I believe it is important to help yourself to fall into a rhythm and have a sense of momentum for what you are doing. Once you start to have the motivation, do not let yourself fall out of it easily but continue to push yourself and stay focused.

What were some of your main obstacles or distractions and how did you manage them while studying?

Aqidah: A huge obstacle for me was my difficult family situation at home, but through much determination I pushed on and did not give up just because of these were unfavourable conditions. Another distraction was social media. So, I deleted all my social media and replaced them with news applications and educational games. It was quite useful.

Grace: My main obstacle was my lack of motivation to study. I think the hardest thing is to get over something that you cannot see, your own feelings. For me that was my main obstacle. My solution to that was to not think too much and to just do it. my distraction was mainly my phone, so I would try to time my phone calls, for example only using it for 10 minutes and then I would stop.

Aces: For me, I used my phone a lot in school so by the time I arrived home, my phone would be running low on battery. I would charge my phone in a separate room and I would study in another room. If I do not see the phone, I would not get tempted to use it.

Megan: I do not think my distraction is one that is very common compared with others. For most, Kpop or Korean dramas would be one main source of distraction, but in my case, I was distracted more so by my own health in the sense that though I was not very sick, I would often have mild flu-like symptoms such as a runny nose. This really drained me of my energy and always made me feel very tired, even more so when I stayed up late to study. After a while, I came to realise that staying up late to study really was not worth it and that it was better to get enough sleep. Though there are people who try to sleep early once or twice every week, they are still very tired during class. This is something that has to be regular for it to work as you can’t expect a single good night’s rest to compensate for the days of sleep deprived nights from studying, so you have to keep to it to see results.

Sarah: In Secondary 3, I was also tempted and often distracted by Korean dramas but coming into my Secondary 4 year, I stopped watching to focus on my studies. Despite this, I realised that I was still easily distracted by my own thoughts and found it hard to focus. I would sit myself down in front of my books and tell myself, ‘I’m going to get some work done’ but more often than not, will end up doing something completely different or come up with excuses to avoid doing the task at hand. I wouldn’t be using my phone but I would end up finding ways to distract myself and I could not focus. So what I did to solve this was to study with my friends as they would always remind me to stay focused and it kept me engaged especially when we had discussions amongst ourselves on the topic and this helped me study my materials and revise while making it more enjoyable for me.

Suwetha: Sometimes, when you sit down to do some work, you can get distracted easily and find your mind elsewhere which I struggled with. To fix this, I would use Skype to call my friends so we could do our work together. Since it is a video or voice call and your friends are not actually beside you, you are not as likely to get distracted while still having company to do work with and make sure you don’t slack off.

What are some of your plans after O Levels?

Grace: I have not really decided whether I want to go to a polytechnic or a Junior College but I am thinking more towards going to polytechnic because I would rather study something that I enjoy and I have passion for than to study for 2 years and in the end unable to achieve what I truly want. Right now, I want to spend more time with my family and my friends and maybe help my parents more. I will continue to work my part time job to help support the family also.

Aces:I have already got accepted into a JC through DSA and have already selected my course before receiving my results. I am still not very sure what I want to do in university. That is as far as my plans go. I do feel like I have to mentally prepare myself for JC as the jump is not easy. I would have to make sure not to let my guard down and study hard.

Megan: I don’t think I’m going to start work just yet. I have not really decided what I want to do in the future, so I would like to keep my options open. As such I personally think going to a JC would be the best choice for me. What advice would you like to give to the current badge of secondary 4s who will be sitting for their O Levels at the end of the year?

Chloe: My advice would just be to take it easy and put in your best effort. You have to be proud of your own effort, of how much you worked for your results. You all should also really appreciate your family and teachers a lot. No one can do this without the support from family, teachers and friends so appreciate the people around you and celebrate your success next year and thank them for their help. Constantly remind yourself of what you are doing this for and how much you want to do well.

Zhijun: All of you are individual people, don’t lose yourself while studying. You have your own ways of studying and your preferences. Some people like studying alone, some with a group of friends. Remember to respect the fact that everyone is different. Also, all of you have the potential to do well. Like I mentioned before, you are all in Crescent, you did well in the PSLE, hence you have the potential to do well. Once yo give up, you are more likely to fail, so do your best.

Megan: It’s good to practice for your common tests, MYEs and Prelims as they provide you with the opportunities to sit for your papers in exam conditions similar to the O levels. Between these checkpoints, it’s good if you do timed practices on your own at home as though taking an actual paper. Though many people would tell you that it's best to study for 30 minutes, then take a 5- minute break before continuing to study, you’re not possibly going to take a 5-minute break during your exams so it’s good to sit yourself down and have the discipline to do the entire exam paper at one shot. Then on the day when you enter the exam venue, it doesn’t feel as scary as you thought it would be and you feel a lot more confident after having done a lot of mock papers. This helps especially if you tend to panic a lot during exams as it might cause you to blank out and affect your performance so the confidence boost from doing more papers could help you perform better under pressure and remain calm during the paper.

Xinyao: I think that you should start your practice papers early. My friends and I only started doing practices after MYEs and it was already a little late considering the number of topics there are to practice for. In addition, the number of weeks you have left after MYEs before your Prelims and O levels is limited and it doesn’t help that teachers could be unavailable that week and you are unable to seek them out for help in consultations. As such, my group of friends and I actually went on to complete the entire stack of History SEQ questions during our study break, which was 2 weeks before the start of the exams. I felt that if we had started earlier, we could have made better use of the time during our study break and could have gone through our work more carefully. Thus, it is really a lot more beneficial to start early and plan ahead. You shouldn’t think that O levels are at the end of the year and is far away, because in truth it is actually a lot sooner than you think.

Suwetha: Do not be too scared. I think after the common tests, MYEs and prelims, which are quite strictly marked, the O levels simply felt like another set of tests, so we weren’t as afraid as we thought we would be. Start your revision early. The teachers provide many opportunities for you to consult them for help and they really do want to help you improve so do take advantage of that.

Sarah: I think that it is important to have confidence in yourself and your own abilities. Unlike my classmates, I did not start doing my TYS papers till the study break and by then everyone else had already done most if not all of them in advance. I think that it is up to you. You should go at a pace that is comfortable for you so long you don’t end up shirking away from your studies. You have to believe in yourself and know that whatever pace you’re going at is the best pace for you and not end up stretching and stressing yourself out, trying to catch up to the rest.

Aqidah:Go for consultations now. It is better to book early. Create a timetable for yourself so you know which subject you are going to consultations for. I also recommend joining or forming a study group. Do not study 24/7 because you will definitely burn out. Just don’t give up, there is a 2 month break after the examinations to look forward to.

Grace: It is your last year in Crescent, do not devote it solely to studying. What matters most is that you have memories to look back on at the end of the year. Treasure your friends, teachers and the culture here in Crescent. Don’t give up. A lot of people will face emotional battles and it is not easy. If you ever feel like you are struggling, go to your teachers. Take care of your health.

Aces: You need to press on and not give up. Secondary Four is definitely not an easy year. When you face an obstacle, having to press on is a really challenging thing to do but I think you should find a constant source of motivation. In dark times, your friends and family will be there to push you on. Surround yourself with positive people and be a positive influence to others. It is also very important to help others who are down press on, be the positive influence on her.

Nicole: A major takeaway is: don’t be discouraged by all the setbacks that you face in your sec 3 and sec 4 year. Don’t let one setback hold you back for the rest of your journey because it’s really not worth it and from what I’ve seen, with practice and the right attitude, you will get there someday. In general, your goal is to live life because your life doesn’t end at O levels. Even if you’re not in a good place now in terms of academics, don’t feel like your life is over because it is not! You’re 16 years old! You still have 50-60 more years to go so don’t neglect the other things in life just for academics.

Elisabeth: Don’t procrastinate and set your foundation right. If you have a better foundation, you will be more confident, and it will actually drive you to go further.

Cherie: I think that it’s important to set goals and stick to them and also don’t give up along the way. I think goal setting is very important because it gives you something to work towards and you won’t have an excuse to give up. Staying awake in class is also important. Whatever your teacher is teaching you is very important. They’ve been doing this for so many years, so you should trust them and listen in class. Even though there is a huge mountain of work to do, it helps to plan out how long you want to spend on this certain piece of homework so that you do not spend too much time on it and not have enough time to do other things. This may help to push your bedtime earlier. I think it is important to maintain good relationships with your deskmate too. In order to stay awake in class, I would talk to my deskmate about things that I did not understand in class. I feel that if I did not clarify with her, I would feel very overwhelmed and I might just fall asleep.